The Warm Up

By now, I trust that you all follow me on Instagram. It's the best place to see my day-to-day living and really come to know me. Earlier in the week, I had the pleasure of attending the Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture MLK Jr. Symposium over the Pursuing Racial Justice in 21st Century America. The title of this post, "The Warm Up", was inspired by both this sweater dress and the hype that event gave me.

I am a proud black woman. It is my hope that anyone who meets me can tell that as they get to know me. My blackness is a defining attribute to who I am and what I stand for as a person. If I think about it, it was around the 12th grade I really started to own it big time and only grew from there. Despite my situation not being nothing extreme, I was proud to be proud of who I was. #ColoristsBeware

The aforementioned MLK event lit a spark in me that reignited my concern of life as a Black American. Had I forgot about our struggles? Of course not, but I haven't been as attuned to them as I was lets say around my NAACP years. I hate to say it, but the fight for justice, in many ways aside from just being black, kind of numbed me up to where the new horrible things that would occur would be...normal. It sucks, but this is just me sharing honestly with you guys.

Conversations like what was shared at the symposium was eye-opening and refreshing. When you bring in people from across the country, who all recount experiences and share knowledge over something they are experiencing as well, it shows how much of a problem things really are. It's crazy to think that my people, black people, are all still experiencing various forms of the hate we received even before this country was a country. [That's more than 241 years btw, if you really wanted to shock yourself]

MLK day is literally a pre-course. I appreciate that we celebrate the life of leader and focus on the change he was killed for before we celebrate the lives of many other leaders, inventors, politicians, and so forth. February is one of my favorite months for the fact that the nation recognizes Black history. It is needed and so valuable when digested for all the information and pride that comes with it, as it really shows what the fight was for and how many people have been able to add to our lives in different ways. Maybe it's my unapologetic blackness or my naturally love to celebrate, but I'm warmed up and I'm so ready.